Generator regulator



Aug. 30, 1932.

B. M. LEECE 1,875,042

GENERATOR REGULATOR Filed Aug. 26, 1929 Bevwvirr ALLA-sci:

Patented Aug. 30, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT? OFFICE BENNETT I. LEEGE, FOLEVEL AND, OHIO, ASSIGNOB TO THE LEECE-NEVILLE COM- PANY, OF CLEVELAND,OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO GENERATOR REGULATOR Application filed August26, 1928. Serial No. 888,336.

This invention relates to generator regulation and has particularreference to systems of control or regulation employing vibratingregulators for regulating for voltage, current, or both voltage andcurrent.

The object of the present invention is to improve the operation of suchregulators and their action on the system. More particularly, it is theaim of the invention to provide certain improvements which increase therate of vibration of the vibratory members of the regulator orregulators and to provide more uniform or steadier vibration andvibration of less amplitude, thus making it more quiet in its actionboth mechanically and electrically from the radio standpoint.

A further object which I believe to be attained by the increase in rateand reduction in the amplitude of vibration is to reduce the inductivekick when the contacts are opened and, therefore, to reduce sparking atthe contacts and provide longer life for the latter, as well as tobetter adapt the generator for radio service.

The above objects are attained by my invention which may be here,briefly summarized as consisting in certain novel combinations andarrangements of parts which will 39 be described in the specificationandset forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying sheet of drawing, Fig. 1 is a plan view of a box orcasing containing control elements, including regulators employed inconnection with a generator subject to variations in speed and load,such as employed on engine propelled vehicles, including automobiles,busses, airplanes, and the like, my invention having particular utilitywhen employed for the regulation of generators employed for thesepurposes; and Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the controlelements and their connectionswith the generator-load circuit.

Though I have illustrated one specific embodiment of the invention, Iwish to make clear before describing the control elements and thedetails ofthe regulators illustrated, that my improvements are usefulnot only with generators having a single supply circuit, but also withgenerators having two supply circuits generally of different voltages,these being particularly useful on airplanes in connection with theusual elements of the load, such as the battery and lights, and also inconnection with the radio receiving or both receiving and sendingapparatus. Such generators have a common held and one armature which mayhave a single winding or two windings with two commutators when thecurrent supply at the high and low voltages is D. C. in both instances,or a commutator at one end and slip rings at the other when the lowvoltage current is D. C. and the high voltage current is A. 0.Additionally, though my invention is here illustrated in connection witha control system having vibrating regulators for regulating for bothvoltage and current, the invention may be used to advantage in a systememploying either a voltage regulator only or a current regulator only,as Well as in one employing both regulators. Furthermore, in theapplication of the invention to a voltage regulator the latter may be ofthe type employing a single coil for producing the vibratory movement ofthe armature or employing a plurality of coils for this purpose. Theinvention, in so far as the voltage regulator is concerned, isillustrated as applied to a vibrating voltage regulator having two coilssimilar in function and arrangement to the coils of my prior PatentsNos. 1,540,698 and 1,633,671, for I find that the invention is veryuseful with a voltage regulator of this type (as well as with one havinga single coil) for causing the armature to vibrate and for changing itsrate of vibration in accordance with the voltage changes of thegenerator.

Referring now to the drawing, the control elements, including theregulator or regulators, as illustrated in Fig. l, are mounted in a boxor casing 10 having a removable cover, not shown, and provided with aninsulating base on which all of the control elements are mounted. Thecontrol elements in the box include, in this instance, a reverse currentcut-out 13, a current regulator 14, a voltage regulator 15, and aswitch16 which is adapted,

voltage and reversal of current through the series coil, or in the eventit should fail to open in the first instance when the reversal ofcurrent occurs in the series coil of the cut-out. The specificarrangement and form of these control elements are not important to myinvention, and reference is-had particularly to the diagrammatic viewwhich clearly illustrates the invention in simplified form.

In Fig. 2 l have shown a shunt generator 17 having a field winding 18.The load may consist of the usual elements, such as a starting andlighting battery 19 and lamps 20, but when the invention is employed onairplanes, the generator may be used also to energize the filaments andplates of radio apparatus carried by the plane.

The reverse current cut-out may consist of the usual elements, namely, amagnet frame 21, a series coil 22, a shunt coil 23, and a pivotedarmature 24 biased toward open position by a spring 25 and adapted toopen and close the generator-load circuit at the contacts 26.

The current regulator comprises a frame 27, a series coil 28, and apivoted vibratory armature 29 biasedtoward closed position by a spring30. The contacts 31 of this current regulator, when closed,short-circuit a combined field resistance and demagnetizing coil 32which, when the contacts are opened, is inserted in the field circuit ofthe generator. This resistance is arranged as a coil preferablyconcentrically with the main series coil 28 of the regulator, and it isdifierentially wound with respect to the latter so that when it isthrown into the field circuit by the separation of the contacts it has ademagnetizing efiect, with the advantages by which the objects of thisinvention are attained, as will later be referred to more fully.

When the seriescoil 28 is traversed by a heavy flow of current from thebattery 19, as when the armature of the cut-out 13 is accidentallyclosed at a time when there is little, if any, generator voltageopposing the battery voltage, the armature 29 opens the switch 16 so asto open the generator circuit and disconnect the shunt coil 23 from thebattery, thus preventing the armature of the cut-out being magneticallyheld in closed position and preventing the discharge of the battery.This switch is more fully described and is claimed in my pendingapplication Serial No. 377,720, filed July 12, 1929.

The switch 16 comprises a plunger 33 arranged so as to be actuated bythe armature 29 under the circumstances mentioned above, and carrying abridging contact 34 adapted te m to bridge a pair of stationary contacts35 arranged between the series coil 28 of the current regulator and theseries coil 22 of the cut-out, the switch being biased toward closedposition by a suitable spring 36.

The voltage regulator comprises a field frame 37 and either one or twomain vibrating soils which cause the armature 38 to vibrate with asuitable increase in rate of vibration as the generator voltage risesand a corresponding decrease in rate as the generator voltage falls. Inthis instance, the regulator has two main coils 39 and 40 which areconnected so that they will function as described in my two priorpatents alreadyreferred to, the coil 39 corresponding to the coil 21 ofPatent No. 1,540,698 and to the coil 18 of Patent No. 1,633,671, and thecoil 40 corresponding to the coil 22 of my Patent No. 1,540,698 and tothe coil 19 of my Patent No. 1,633,671. These two coils, whose magneticefiects are additive, may be wound concentrically on the core of thefield frame 37. The armature 38 of this regulator has a contact whichengages a stationary contact, the contacts being designed 41, and thisarmature is biased toward closed position by a spring 42. When thecontacts are closed, they short-circuit a combined field resistance anddemagnetizing coil 43, this combined resistance and coil being arrangedon a suitable part of the frame or armature of the regulator 16 andbeing connected in circuit so that when the contacts are separated it isthrown into the field circuit and is traversed by a current having ademagnetizing action i. e., an action difierential with respect to thatof the coils 39 and 40. Although the coil 43 may be mounted on anysuitable part of the frame of the voltage regulator, I find that thebest results are obtained if it is arranged close to the contacts 41. I,therefore, prefer to support it so that it surrounds the armature 38, asshown in Fig. 1, the armature extending freely through the coil so thatits vibratory movement will not be restricted by the coil. The contacts41 may, if desired, be bridged by a condenser 44.

The circuit connections may be briefly described as follows: Oneterminalof the generator is here shown connected by a conductor 45 tothe field frame 37 of the voltage regulator 15 and the field frame 37 isconnected by a conductor 46 to the series coil 28 of the currentregulator 14. This coil is connected through the contacts of the switch16 to the series coil 22 of the reverse current cut-out and the coil 22is connected to the field frame 21 and through the contacts 26, by wayof conductor 47, to one side of the load circuit. The other side of theload circuit is connected by conductor 48 to the other terminal of thegenerator.

One terminal of the shunt coil 23 of the I conductor 46 on the generatorside of the switch contacts 35, so that this switch, when opened, willdisconnect the coil from the battery. The other terminal of the shuntcoil 23 of the cut-out is connected by a conductor 50 to the maincurrent carrying conductor 48.

The coil 39 of the voltage regulator has one terminal connected to thefield frame 37 and its other terminal connected by conductor 51 to themain current carrying conductor- 48. Thus this coil 39 is in effectconnected across the terminals of the generator but its circuit is notaffected by the opening and closing of the contacts 41 of the voltageregulator. Preferably, though not necessarily, a resistance 52, which,in some instances, may have a positive and in other instances a negativetemperature coefiicient, is in the conductor 51 so as to be in thecircuit of the coil 39. The coil 40 of the voltage regulator has oneterminal connected to the conductor 51 (between the resistance 52 andthe conductor 48). -The other terminal of the coil is connected to thestationary contact 41 of the voltage regulator.

The combined field resistance and demagnetizing coil 43 of the voltageregulator has one terminal connected to the stationary contact 41 ofthis regulator and its other ter-- minal is connected to a suitable partof the field frame 37 or to the armature 38.

One terminal of the field winding 18 of the generator is shown connectedto one terininal of the generator and the other terminal of the fieldwinding is connected by a conductor 53 to the stationary contact 31 ofthe current regulator 14. The armature or field frame of the currentregulator is connected by a conductor 54 to the stationary contact 41 ofthe voltage regulator. Consequently, when the contacts of the currentregulator 14 and the contacts 41 of the voltage regulator 15 are closed,the field winding 18 is connected directly across the terminals of thegenerator, the combined field resistance and demagnetizing coil 32 ofthe current regulator and the combined field resistance anddemagnetizing coil 43 of the voltage regulator then beingshort-circuited by the contacts. When the contacts of either set areopen, the corresponding field resistance and demagnetizing coil is cutinto the field circuit, and when both sets are open at the same time,both of the combined field resistances and demagnetizing coils areconnected in series in the field circuit, so as to reduce the ampereturns of the field winding. It will be understood that until the loadreaches a predetermined value, determined by the strength or adjustmentof the spring 30 of the current regulator, the contacts of the currentregulator remain closed, but .when the load current exceeds saidpredetermined value, the armature 29 vibrates so as to cut the combinedfield resistance and demagnetizing coil 32 into and out of the fieldcircuit, this continuing until the value of the load current drops belowthe predetermined point. Likewise, it will be understood that thearmature 38 of the voltage regulator operates continuously, at leastwhile the armature 29 of the current regulator is stationary, and as itsvoltage rises, the effect of the coil 39 isto increase its rate ofvibration, the combined field resistance and demagnetizing coil 43 beingcut into the field circuit each time the contacts of the voltageregulator are separated.

I find that by arranging the field resistances controlled by the currentand voltage regulators as demagnetizing coils, the vibratory action ofeach regulator is less sluggish than it otherwise would be, in fact itsrate of vibration is greatly increased and is rendered more smooth anduniform, as is desired to produce the best results for both current andvoltage regulation. By reason of the fact that the rate of vibration isincreased, the amplitude of movement is decreased and this renders theaction of the regulator quieter. Oscillographic tests show that thevoltage across the contacts of each regulator when the contacts areopen, due to inductive action, is considerably less when my invention isemployed than is the case when ordinary field resistances are employedwithout the accompaniment of the demagnetizing action secured by myimprovements. This may be explained by the fact that the increase in therate of vibration is such that the inductive kick cannot rise to itsmaximum before the contacts are again closed. At any rate, while I amnot certain that this is the case, comparative tests show that with theuse of the present invention the rather high induced voltage heretoforeprevalent is greatly reduced, with the result that sparking at thecontacts is reduced, the contacts have much greater life, less condensercapacity is required, and the apparatus is rendered more satisfactoryfor radio work.

Finally, it might be stated that my invention can be used on a greatvariety of installations where close regulation is desired, but it isespecially useful, as already stated, in connection with generatorsemployed under widely varying speed and load conditions, as on gasengine propelled vehicles of various kinds. The invention has addedadvantage when employed on airplanes in connection with a generator forenergizing filaments and plates on radio apparatus where smoothness ofoperation is especiallv desired. N aturally, the current regulatorvibrates at a lower rate than the voltage regulator, and for someinstallations it is desirable that the current regulator be eliminatedand that the regulation be obtained entirely from the voltage regulatorand in such instances the voltage regulator, constructed and operatingin acclaim:

cordance with the present invention, gives exceedingly good resultsinsofar as all parts of the load are concerned, including the radioapparatus.

In view of what was stated in the early part of the specification, itwill be apparent that I do not regard my invention'as limited to theparticu ar embodiment illustrated, either as to the number of control orregulat-'- ing elements employed in the system or as to the details ofthe regulator and the method of connections, the important point beingthat the conductor or resistance element 7 I which is out into a circuitto reduce thecurrent flowing therethrough and in this instance to reducethe ampere turns of the field winding of the generator has ademagnetizing efiect with respect to the main coil or coils of theregulator.

Having thus described my invention, I

1. The combination with a generator having a fieldwinding, of a voltageregulator for the generator comprising a magnet having an armature, oneor more coils for vibratlng the same, and a conducting element servingas a demagnetizing coil for the regulator and also to change the ampereturns of the field winding of the generator and rendered V efl'ectiveand ineffective by the vibration of the armature, saidconducting elementbeing arranged to surround said armature.

2. In a system such as described, a generator. adapted to be connectedto a load circuit and having a field winding, a voltage regulatorcomprising a vibratory armature and two voltage coilsadditive in theirmagnetic actions,- and one having its circuit unaffected and the otherhaving its circuit affected by the movement of the armature, and a thirdcoil differentially wound with respect to the two first named coilsand'adapted to be cut into and out of the field circuit by the vibratoryaction of the armature, said third coil being arranged to surround saidvibratory armature.

,- 3. The combination with a generator having a field winding, of aregulator for varying the ampere turns of said field winding andcomprising a magnet having a vibratory armature, a coil for actuatingsaid armature,

and another coil surrounding said armature and having a demagnetizingefiect on the first mentioned coil.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aflix my signature.

BENNETT M. LEEGE.

